INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
TOKYO: Japan's
Nikkeiedgedupon Thursday after a
weakyen supported overall sentiment, but a
profitwarning by Germany's
Continental
dragged down
auto stocks and tire makers.
The
Nikkei share average ended 0.2 per cent higher at 22,410.82.
Analysts said that investors
were staying on the sidelines
as China-US trade talks were underway and the US Federal Reserve held its annual symposium in Jackson
Hole.
US and Chinese officials met for the first time in over two months to find a way out of their deepening trade conflict, but there was
no evidence the low-level discussions would halt a new round of US tariffs due
Thursday.
US Fed Chair Jerome Powell and other central
bankers will meet at Jackson Hole
on Friday to discuss the root causes of stubbornly low inflation, slow wage growth and tepid productivity
gains.
"Investors want to find out which direction the market will be taking, whether there will be changes in the momentum after these
events," said Takatoshi Itoshima, a strategist at Pictet Asset Management.
Auto shares, tire makers and autoparts makers fell after
automotive supplier
Continental AG nosedived 13 per cent on the back of a
profitwarning.
Toyota Motor Corp fell 1.1 per cent, while Nissan
Motor Co dropped 2.0 per cent, and Bridgestone Corp lost 2.0 per cent,
Yokohama Rubber was down 2.7 per cent, Denso Corp lost 2.8 per cent
and Tokai Rika dropped 3.2 per cent.
Gainers included discount furniture store operator Nitori Holdings,
up 3.9 per cent after its August
same-store-sales rose 0.7 per cent
The result beat expectations and soothed investor concerns that the company would find it hard to post a year-on-year gain after a lofty 14
per cent rise a year earlier.
Other retail stocks also gained ground, with Aeon rising 1.6 per cent and Fast Retailing
up 2.8 per cent.
The
broader Topix was flat at 1,698.22.
